On May 5, 1976, the Central Virginia Health Planning Agency was designated by the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare as the health systems agency for central Virginia. When federal funds supporting this health planning effort ceased in 1987, state, local and private funds were used to sustain the efforts of the Agency. In 1990, the General Assembly increased its support of health planning, including certificate of public need review, and designated five health planning agencies in the state. Beginning in 2002, state support for regional planning agencies began to diminish and by 2008, state funding had all but disappeared.
The CVHPA has been diversifying its activities and funding sources over the last decade to continue its mission to serve the health and human service related needs of communities in Virginia. Specifically, CVHPA has provided a range of services including: